Cycling World Magazine July 2017 - Page 70

70 | Cycling World
Understanding
Track Competitions
By Phil Jones, www.cyclingrevolution.com
T
rack cycling can seem like an impenetrable beast
to the uninitiated, with seemingly complicated
races, convoluted rules and technical jargon that
makes you feel like you need a glossary
to understand. Sprints
In actual fact, track cycling races are very simple when
you know what s going on. There really is nothing quite
like going to a track event to fully understand the basic
rules, the nuances, the tactics and the technical terms. The team sprint, on the other hand, more resembles
a team pursuit, with the competing teams starting on
opposite straights on the track. The concept is still the
same though; three laps of the track and the fastest wins,
only in the team sprint a rider peels off at the end of each
lap, until you re ust left with one man to take on the final
lap, solo.
The recent C Track World Championships in ong
Kong saw ten events run for both men and women. Keen
observers will note that figure is substantially higher
than the five contested at last summer s Olympic ames
in Rio, where track cycling got its biggest exposure to
the world. Sporting politics, a desire to have the same
number of medals contested between men and women,
and the Olympic Games not wanting to become too
overblown are the main reasons behind the disparity in
races between the two events, meaning even those au-
fait with Olympic track cycling may still be missing out on
the best of the action.
Track events can broadly be split into two categories
bunch races and tests against the clock. They can also be
split into sprint and endurance events, but more on that
later.
Against the clock
Pursuits
One of the simplest races to watch and understand is the
individual pursuit. Two riders set off on opposite sides of
the track, both aiming to complete 4km in the shortest
amount of time. The fastest one wins, and if one rider
manages to catch the other before the 4km distance is
reached, then that also counts as a win.
The team pursuit follows the exact same format, ust that
there are four riders competing in each team and they
take turns to ride at the front of their quartet, putting in
the greatest effort to punch a hole in the air while their
teammates roll along behind in their slipstream, before
swinging up and joining the back of the queue.
The individual sprint sees two riders race head-to-head
over three laps, with the first one to cross the finish line
the winner – simple as that.
Keirin
An event that hails from a history of gambling in
apan, where a field of six riders set off behind a pacing
motorbike known as a derny. The bike takes three laps
to get up to a speed of around km h, before pulling off
the track to leave a six-way sprint over three further laps
the first rider over the line wins.
Time trials
A test of speed and endurance, there’s nothing much to
understand here. The men race over one kilometre, which
has led to the race commonly being known as the kilo,
while the women race over 500m. Each rider takes it in
turns to set their mark over the distance from a standing
start, and the fastest wins – simple.
Bunch races
Scratch race
A scratch race is as simple as a race can be. The bunch
set off on a race over a pre-determined distance and
the first rider to complete that distance is the winner.
Complications come when riders launch attacks to try
and gain a lap on the field. f a rider does successfully
break from the front of the bunch and ride away until
they re oin at the rear of the field, then they will inevitably
complete the allotted distance a lap earlier than their
competitors and will be declared the winner. If two or
more riders take a lap on the field, the winner will be the
first over the line in the ensuing sprint.